From incredible street food to its famous temples, Thailand is a popular international destination for Aussie travellers. If you’re headed over to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, or Phuket and want to stay connected then you’ll want to check out one of these affordable mobile roaming
plans.
Before we start, here are the cheapest roaming plans from each postpaid telco featured in this guide:
Plus, here are the cheapest roaming plans with at least 28-day expiry from each prepaid telco featured:
Roaming in Thailand with your
telco
Roaming in Thailand with Tangerine
Tangerine is a Telstra MVNO with two fairly priced roaming add-ons:
| Travel Pack | Price | Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
|
7-day expiry | $35 | 30 mins, 30 texts, 5GB |
|
14-day expiry | $55 | 60 mins, 60 texts, 10GB |
Here are Tangerine’s mobile plans:
Roaming in Thailand with Vodafone
Fortunately Vodafone’s famous $5
roaming postpaid plan add-on is available in Thailand. For just $5 a day you get full access to your full plan inclusions.
Vodafone’s $5 roaming is available for up to 90 days each year. You can activate $5 roaming on any of these Vodafone postpaid plans:
If you’re a Vodafone prepaid customer, you can’t access $5 roaming. Instead you can choose one between these three add-ons:
| Pack | Price | Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
| 1-day expiry | $5 | 25 mins, 30 texts, 200MB |
|
7-day expiry | $15 | 90 mins, 120 texts, 750MB |
|
14-day expiry | $35 | 200 mins, 300 texts, 2GB |
Roaming in Thailand with Belong
Belong has a fairly short list of countries it offers roaming in and luckily Thailand is one of them. This Telstra MVNO offers one simple add-on that includes 3GB of data, unlimited texts and 150 minutes of calls. It has a 15-day expiry and costs $30.
You can use this roaming add-on on the following Belong plans:
Roaming in Thailand with felix
felix is a Vodafone MVNO with a decent roaming offer. For $20 you get 4GB of data, 100 text messages and 100 minutes of calls. It has a 365-day expiry so you don’t need to use all your roaming inclusions at once.
Here are felix’s mobile plans that you can activate roaming on:
Roaming in Thailand with Optus
Just like Vodafone, Optus offers roaming on postpaid plans from $5. Unlike Vodafone, you don’t get access to your full plan. Instead, you get 5GB each day and unlimited talk and text. Any inclusions you don’t use expire at the end of each day and if you go over the data allowance you’ll be charged again.
You can access Optus roaming in any country Optus designates as Zone 1 including Thailand.
Optus’ $5 roaming is available on the following postpaid plans:
Optus also has a few options for its prepaid customers including:
| Add-on | Price | Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
|
1-day expiry | $5 | 100 mins, 100 texts, 1GB |
| 7-day expiry | $35 | 700 mins, 700 texts, 7GB |
Roaming in Thailand with Telstra
Thailand is designated a Zone 2 country by Telstra which means your option for roaming in
Thailand is to grab an International Day Pass. Telstra’s Day Pass includes unlimited calls and texts and 1GB of data for $10 per day. This stays active for 31 after purchase.
The International Day Pass can be activated on the following Telstra postpaid plans:
Telstra prepaid customers have the option of purchasing one of the following international roaming packs:
| Pack | Price | Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
| 3-day expiry | $10 | 15 mins, 15 texts, 400MB |
| 7-day expiry | $15 | 25 mins, 25 texts, 2GB |
|
14-day expiry | $25 | 50 mins, 50 texts, 4GB |
Roaming in Thailand with Boost Mobile
Thailand is one of the 40 countries where Boost Mobile offers International Roaming Packs.
Boost Mobile customers can choose between three roaming options:
| Pack | Price | Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
|
3-day expiry | $20 | 15 mins, 15 texts, 1GB |
|
7-day expiry | $30 | 30 mins, 30 texts, 3GB |
|
14-day expiry | $40 | 60 mins, 60 texts, 5GB |
You can see Boost’s prepaid plans with 28-day expiry here:
Roaming in Thailand with amaysim
amaysim has a slightly different approach to international roaming with four different packs with varying inclusions for the person. Each pack has a 365-day expiry meaning there’s no need to use it all at once.
Here are amaysim’s international roaming packs:
| Pack Name | Price | Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
|
Small Talk | $20 | 100 mins, 100 texts |
| The Works | $25 | 50 mins, 50 texts, 1GB |
| Just Gigs | $50 | 5GB |
| The Epic | $70 | 100 mins, 100 texts, 5GB |
These roaming packs can be added on the following 28-day expiry prepaid plans:
Get a Thailand SIM
card
Travelling for more than a week? It might be worth it to get a local Thailand SIM card.
There are a couple of things to keep in mind when buying a SIM in Thailand:
- Double-check your mobile isn’t locked to a network. In general most smartphones these days aren’t locked so you can readily switch to any SIM-only
plan. - Check the terms and conditions. Make sure you’re not signing up for a contract that’s going to last longer than your holiday and that you can turn off auto-renewal.
The easiest way to pick up a Thailand SIM is at one of the following airports when you arrive:
- Suvarnabhumi Airport (Bangkok International Airport – BKK)
- Don Mueang International Airport (DMK)
- Phuket International Airport (HKT)
- Chiang Mai International Airport (CNX)
- Krabi International Airport (KBV)
Remember you may need ID in order to make your purchase. The big three mobile operators in Thailand are AIS, True Move and DTAC. DTAC offers “Tourist” SIMS from 299 baht (AUD$12.68 at the time of writing). This includes unlimited calls to other DTAC numbers and 15GB of data with an 8-day expiry.
Buying a Thailand eSIM
If your mobile has eSIM then it can be a good option instead of international roaming when you’re taking a trip to Thailand. All you need to do is buy and set up your Thailand eSIM before you depart or when you arrive.
Airalo is one of our top picks for Thailand travel eSIMs. Here are Airalo’s Thailand plan prices:
| Price | Inclusions | Expiry |
|---|---|---|
| USD$9.90 | 100 mins, 50GB | 10 days |
| USD$19.95 | Unlimited calls and texts, unlimited data | 15 days |
You can compare Airalo’s Thailand eSIM plans here.
Other providers include eSIM Thailand where plans start from USD9.99 for 15GB of data with 15-day expiry. There are also unlimited data
plans from as little as $1.29 per day. These include a limited amount of data at uncapped speeds and then capped speeds once you use up that allowance.
Use free public WiFi in
Thailand
If you’re only planning to be in Thailand for a few days then you might not need to worry about a Thailand travel SIM or roaming at all. Free WiFi is available in many public spaces across the country. With the right apps you can call, message and video chat with people back home in Australia.
The downside of using free public WiFi is that it may not be available everywhere and where it is available it may have a time limit.
Hot tip
If you’re opting to chase after free WiFi make sure you set your phone to airplane mode when not connected or double and triple check you’ve turned off data roaming so you don’t get hit by fees from your telco.
SIM cards for travelling in Thailand
FAQs
Can you buy a Thailand SIM card in
Australia?
Yes, if you want to purchase your Thailand SIM card ahead of time you can order it from online stores such as SimsDirect or SIMCorner who deliver to Australia. SimsDirect offers plans on the DTAC network and SIMCorner’s operate on the AIS network.
Remember to double-check what’s included in your plan.
Can I use my Australian phone in
Thailand?
Yes, so long as your device is unlocked you will be able to use your
Australian phone in Thailand.
Is it cheaper to get a SIM card in
Thailand?
It all comes down to how long you plan to visit Thailand. It’s a better idea to get a cheap Thailand the longer your trip becomes. For example even with Vodafone’s $5 a roaming you’d end up spending $70 for a 14-day trip.
